During a trip to Hondoq, a group of young students from the San Lawrenz Summer Fun Club were given a ‘dive talk’ by a diving instructress from Blue Waters Dive Cove.

Doris, the instructress, described her job to the group and outlined the precautions that need to be taken when going on a dive. The information session also included question and answer sessions by both Doris and the students.

San Lawrenz’s close proximity to Dwejra Bay means that these children often frequent the area, where the sight of divers preparing their equipment before they submerge into the blue sea is almost a fixture. Possibly they reason why many of the students were already familiar with the diving equipment they were shown.

None of the youngsters had ever been on a dive and many seemed quite interested to hear about what the underwater world actually looks like. Further information was also given about the ecological importance of the species found in our seas.

The talk then revolved around the importance of conserving the marine environment, where the hazards of overfishing and littering were described.

Doris, explained to the students the worrying fact that sea turtles have decreased drastically from our seas. “This is all down to illegal fishing and plastic bags in our waters. Turtles mistake plastic bags for jellyfish and suffocate to death after ingesting them,” she said.

The students all agreed that when they go to the beach, rubbish should be disposed of in any available bins, or if not, it should be taken home for correct disposal there.

Doris concluded her talk by explaining the economic importance of the sea to our islands. A lot of tourists visit Gozo just for the surrounding sea. “Not taking care of our seas will eventually jeopardise the tourism industry upon which many livelihoods depend.”

All students pledged to be extra careful when at the beach and to make sure that their visits do not affect the environment negatively.

Moreover, most of the students said that they will go for a try-dive in the future when they are old enough. Dorise reiterated that, when all rules are followed, diving is a pretty safe sport.

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